On the fashion side, the Vogue appearances are continuing the fashion industry's long-standing relationship with the show -- designers like Tory Burch and Georgina Chapman have made appearances on the show, in addition to supermodel Tyra Banks.

On the Fashion's Night Out front, the hype machine is starting to veer dangerously on the over-the-top side. On the one hand, a night in support of retail deserves all the promotion people who care about the business of fashion can give it; but on the other hand, there were streets in Soho that one simply could not walk down last year, which meant that the night did more to hype celebrity appearances, in many instances, than actually boost retail sales. For our part, we're hoping there's a bit more room to breathe (and browse the new fall wares!) this year.